


Lost But Not Forgotten

by renegadeartist



Category: RWBY
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-19
Updated: 2015-03-05
Packaged: 2018-03-08 04:42:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3195722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/renegadeartist/pseuds/renegadeartist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been years since the "cure." It's been years since the Grimm were eradicated, leaving humanity to do as they wished, and making hunters and huntresses obsolete. The students of combat schools all over the continent suddenly find themselves without a future, forcing them to adapt to the rapidly changing world. Many teams were disbanded, like RWBY and CFVY, among others. But the more-or-less peaceful lives everyone had set up could come crashing down in one day just because of one simple, overlooked fact.</p><p>The cure isn't a cure, it's a disease.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Your Past Doesn't Define You (But it Sure Feels Like it)

**Author's Note:**

> The first few chapters are going to be short, but once all of team RWBY's accounted for is when the real fun's going to start. If you like it comment and tell me why. I love hearing from my readers. To the people who hoped I would update one of my other fics today: sorry, I'm stuck in a bit of a writer's block for those. I haven't forgotten them, don't worry. Anyways, enjoy!

There were days when she would look out at the green trees and the leaves falling to the ground from unimaginable creatures patrolling the branches and wonder if things could have been different. Not the kind of different that would have kept her and her team together, the kind of different where the world hadn’t gone to absolute shit. Maybe that was selfish. She should be glad, really, that the monsters were gone, that people could live their lives and the cities didn’t have to have twenty foot thick walls just to keep them safe at night. Instead she was just bitter. Anyone who knew her would have been surprised and appalled. How had the little girl who got into Beacon two years early turn into such a bitter adult? She would have just shrugged and replied that times change, though she always hoped for the day when she could let go of the bitterness and regret that had been living in her since they found the solution to the Grimm.

The “cure” they called it, though what it was curing was beyond everyone. It wasn’t until they put it into action that people started to understand. It was a cure to the terror that humanity lived in daily. They said that the cure was designed to target Grimm, to strip away at the monstrosities and leave them dead or meek, too afraid to be anything more than small animals that jumped through trees or scuttled in the underbrush. They rarely attacked, and when they did it was to solitary travelers. They called it a cure, but it was really a disease. It was the genocide of an entire race of beings. It got to a point where Ruby was actually _sorry_ for what was happening to the creatures. Oobleck had once told her that the Grimm remembered, that they grew and learned from what happened in the past. As she watched the goliaths falling down and dying, letting out pitiful wails that she never imagined would come from the monsters she hunted daily; she wondered if they understood what was happening, what humanity was doing to them. They sure looked like they did.

In that regard she figured that it was for the better that she wasn’t a huntress anymore. She wasn’t sure if she could kill them after hearing the pitiful cries of the Beowolves as they lay dying in huge amounts, the black bodies only piling up momentarily before they evaporated into nothingness. That was the only regard, though. She wanted to be a huntress, had always wanted to be one. In a world where they were obsolete she felt that she had no place. She found a small plot of land a few hours outside of an outpost that people were taking to calling Achievement Outpost. Eventually it grew into Achievement City, a relatively small gathering of buildings with a skyscraper in the middle that served no purpose other than to be there because some rich guy decided he wanted one. She was known as the city’s mechanic. If you needed your vehicle fixed or a tool repaired you went to her. At first they complained that they didn’t know how to work the modifications that she was so fond of adding to anything taken to her but eventually they learned that more often than not they got more then what they paid for. They warmed up to her eventually.

As she was hammering at a red strip of metal she heard a rapping on the large garage door that led into her workspace. She looked up, wiping the sweat from her face with a spare cloth. The person wasn’t someone she was familiar with. He was of average height, an overall square face, with a mop of curls falling into his eyes. She didn’t recognize him, but she greeted him like a friend all the same. “Hello, can I help you with something?” Her smile was strained and fake, but he wasn’t looking at her. He was staring at the weapons lining the wall, the tools on her workbench, everything. His eyes kept darting from one thing to another, never staying long on a single item. He looked nervous.

“Uh, yeah, I need a weapon.” He rubbed his palms on his pants, and pulled out a wallet that looked a little too thin for him to be coming to a mechanic. She looked at him, concerned, when he started coughing. It sounded like he was sick or something. He pulled out a piece of cloth, covering his mouth with it. When he could talk again he shoved it back in his pocket and took a deep breath. He was shaking. “Whatever you’ve got, I’ll pay for it. I just need a weapon.”

“Why?” was Ruby’s immediate question. He looked like he really regretted coming to her now. She just stared at him until he broke. He squared his shoulders, as if ready for her to stop him from doing whatever he was going to do. She didn’t know why. She wasn’t his mother, she wasn’t responsible for him. She didn’t even know him. In retrospect it seemed like a terrible thing to do, to not be willing to help someone so obviously in need. That’s what huntresses were supposed to do. Too bad she wasn’t one anymore. Too bad the expressive, childish, and happy Ruby had died along with all the Grimm.

“I’m leaving the city.” Ruby kept looking at him, urging him to continue. He did, with some hesitation. His eyes had finally settled on staring at her. “I… I need to leave. I can’t stay here.”

“You running from the cops or something?” Ruby asked, already looking over the many weapons she hung up on the wall. The first thing she picked up was a blue-bladed sword, one that she had modified to be a bit more impressive than Jaune’s old one. She winced at the memory. It had been years since she’d thought of any of the members of JNPR. It had been years since she’d thought of any of her fellow ex-hunters.

“Yeah, yeah, something like that,” he muttered. She knew he was lying, but she figured she had tortured him long enough. Again, the Ruby that would have gone out of her way to help him had died long ago. She walked over and offered him the sword that she had fitted in a sheath once again modeled after Jaune’s weapon. He took it in shaking hands, pulling the blade out just enough to see it. “Blue…?”

“I have plenty of other weapons if you don’t want the sword.” She reached towards the item, only to have it jerked back by the man. He looked panicked, like she was threatening to take away his only hope. She flung her hands up, a genuine smile dancing momentarily across her lips. “Fine, fine, take the sword. It doesn’t matter to me why you need it.” He took it out fully, swinging it around in a way that suggested he once knew how to wield a sword. Ruby wasn’t sure what she expected. “You’re a hunter.”

He froze, almost dropping the weapon. The shaking, which had gone away as soon as he’d had the sword, suddenly came back. “…ex-hunter. You know as well as I do that there’s no need for us anymore.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Do I know you?”

He shrugged. “Probably not. Most of the students at Beacon knew who you were. Everyone at Signal knew the famous Ruby Rose, the huntress that had so much potential that Professor Ozpin himself allowed you into his school. You had a bright future… we all did.” There was a long, deafening silence. Ruby didn’t like dwelling on the past so long, not after all these years.

“What’s your name then? I may not have known you… back then, but that’s no excuse not to know each other now.” She looked at the floor. “It’s been a while since… since I’ve talked to any hunter, or any of my team for that matter.”

He put the sword away, slinging it over his back like he used to do every day before going about his daily routine with his team. It felt nice to have the familiar weight on his back again. “I’m Michael. Michael Jones.”

“Where’s the color?” she asked, finding it weird that his name broke from the time honored code.

He just shrugged. “My parents were never ones for sticking to tradition.” He pointed at the weapon strapped against his back. “Anyways, how much?”

Ruby just smiled a bit and shook her head. “It’s on me. I’m always happy to help a fellow hunter.”

Michael smiled, and walked out of her workshop, waving at her as he disappeared back towards the city. It wasn’t until that night that she realized that she _had_ heard the name Michael Jones before. It had been on a normal day in the dorms, and they had been talking about anything they could think of. Blake had mentioned a bear faunus who had a peculiar name and a fiery temper. Funny, Ruby hadn’t noticed any ears on the man.


	2. Change is Good (Except When It's You)

They were shouting again. It seemed like she never got a break. It was always "Miss Schnee" this and "Miss Schnee" that. If they weren't constantly trying to get her attention they were screaming at each other at the top of their lungs. Really, it was more like working with a bunch of children then highly paid professionals. She rubbed her temples, attempting to stave off the headache that was inevitable. When they started throwing things was when she left. They probably didn't even notice that she was gone. They just kept shouting at each other like they had something to prove. It was highly unprofessional. She would have to consider hiring new employees. Or maybe promoting someone to take their places.

"Uh, Weiss, don't you still have a meeting for the next..." Velvet glanced at the clock, "Forty minutes?"

"I _did_ , but they're just shouting so I figured I deserved a break. It's just a board meeting anyways, nothing too important." She laced her arm through Velvet's and marched her through the tall Schnee Company building. "I think you deserve a break too. Let's go play hookie."

Velvet looked like she was about to burst out laughing even though her tone was scolding. "Weiss, you're not a student anymore. You're the owner of one of the largest companies in the world. You should start acting like it at some point."

Weiss pouted and crossed her arms. While Ruby had grown bitter, she had grown childish. It was almost like the absence of monsters in the world had lifted a huge weight from her shoulders. Sure, the day in the fields outside Vale still haunted her, but it wasn't like a memory could hurt her. It wasn't like the Grimm could hurt her anymore, not here. Mountain Glenn had become a second home to her almost as quickly as she had warmed up to her team back at Beacon. That is to say, she really hated it at first. She wasn't even sure why she had agreed to move the location of the Dust Company there in the first place. Oh, no, she did. It was because Ozpin told her to. Even with the school gone it seemed that the man was still pulling strings. He had also bought Tuckson's and subsequently sold it to Blake, a fact that probably escaped the faunus girl's notice. She shook her head and brought herself back to the present. "Don't be like that, Velvet. You're my only real friend here. I like hanging out with you leagues more than I like sitting in dull meetings with a bunch of man-children."

She just shook her head. "Well someone has to keep you out of trouble.

Weiss's smile threatened to crack her face. She grabbed Velvet's arm again and rushed them out of the Schnee Dust Company building. The streets were packed with people as always, the streets clogged by traffic. Everyone was heading home after a long day's work. Velvet was walking alongside her, making idle conversation to fill the silence between the two. "Have you heard the reports of Grimm sightings in the city?"

"Here? In Mountain Glenn?" Weiss asked, surprised. The last time she'd heard about any type of monster near civilization was the scare a few years prior with the rats that people claimed had red markings and white bone structures protruding from their bodies. The claim had never been confirmed or investigated for two reasons, one, they were just rats. What harm could they do? Two, they disappeared before anyone could even think of doing anything. "No I haven't. Is it more serious then-"

"Then the rats? Yes. I don't hear a lot, but the things I do don't sound too good. People are describing Beowolves, Weiss. I... I don't want to sound paranoid but I think they may be true." She had stopped and was staring at the ground. Weiss looked at her, concerned.

"How do you know?"

"I- I don't," she said, sounding like she was choking down words. "People talk a lot, especially when the only person there is the secretary. And a Faunus to top it all."

Weiss grabbed her hands, causing her to look up at her. "I'm sure it's nothing. The cure still works, it worked back then and it works now. Don't worry about it; I'm sure it's nothing. It's nothing," she insisted when Velvet didn't look like she believed her. "Besides, it's not like the Atlesian Knights won't take care of any Grimm that comes into the city."

Velvet shuffled quietly behind, muttering, "They didn't seem to help when they got in before."

Weiss chose to ignore her, opting instead to pay attention to where they were going in the city. As the years had gone by she had made herself intimately familiar with the streets and people, though most people would have brushed off the thought of the owner of Schnee Dust Company bothering herself with things like that they interested her greatly. She loved learning about the little things, like where underground hunters and huntresses still tried to operate, taking jobs usually reserved for criminals. She used her great influence in the city to keep the police away from those areas. She still had a soft spot for ex-hunters like herself. Not everyone got a second chance. Not everyone could let go. She was one of the lucky ones, not that she ever thought that giving up her life as a huntress would destroy her. She had too much to live for, even with her team broken up and scattered across the continent. That was one of the reasons she hired Velvet, though she would never tell her.

They made their way across streets and cracked asphalt, past the towering buildings and glass storefronts to the more modest areas of Mountain Glenn. The outskirts of the city had trees and parks and small corner shops that promised more quality than any of the brand name shops. A few of them still sold dust in its weaponized form. Usually if there was dust anywhere it was in compact battery forms, unfit for any type of combat. She was glad for the corner shops, secretly. She still had Myrtenaster, still used it whenever she had the chance, even if there was no other reason other than to swing it to and fro every so often. She usually kept it on her person, just because she couldn’t stand to go about her day without it.

Velvet was walking ahead, heading towards one of their favorite parks to just relax and hang out at. It was a nice break from the stress she usually experienced, a nice break from yelling so loudly her voice almost broke from the strain of trying to be heard over a dozen screaming men. There was a group of kids playing some kind of card game near her. She inched closer, trying to see what they were doing. The cards looked homemade, probably based off of the game she and her team used to play, the one she was never any good at.

She smiled at the cards, seeing what they had written on them. There were things like Professor Ozpin and Hunter Fox, names and faces cut out of magazine articles or copied sloppily from their scrolls. They were shouting and arguing, having fun in the way only kids can. She crouched down next to one of the kids- a girl with long red hair and a wide smile- and asked, “What are you playing?”

She jumped a little, glancing at Weiss before her smile broke through again. “We’re playing a card game! Jeremy made the cards and I don’t think anyone else really knows how to play,” she ended the last statement by glaring at a boy across from her. He pouted.

“Well maybe you’d understand it if you listened when I explained it.” His frown quickly turned into an O of surprise. “Wait… are you… Weiss Schnee?”

The owner of the Schnee Dust Company smiled widely. “Yes, actually. Who might you be, sir?”

Another boy, this one with long, dark brown hair and thick glasses jumped up before he could answer. “I’m Matt! I’m much better than Jeremy!”

Weiss laughed. “Are you really?” The boy gave a fervent nod. “Well, how would you like it if you saw a real life huntress in action?”

All of the kid’s eyes grew huge and they all nodded their heads so much Weiss almost thought they would fall off. She grinned and pulled out Myrtenaster, the white metal gleaming in the afternoon light. In the years since she had been a real huntress she had made some adjustments to it, making it a lighter and more effective weapon, even though there was no use for it anymore. It looked more streamline, the mechanical parts hidden under intricate designs carved delicately into the sword. The kids who were watching oo-ed and aw-ed. A crowd was quickly forming around them.

She activated her semblance, a simple propulsion glyph, and launched herself into the air, leaving a trail of ice particles in her wake. The crowd looked up, wonder in their eyes. It had obviously been a long time since they had seen a huntress, if ever. She activated her fire dust in midair, sending what looked like fireworks into the air. Truthfully they were high powered packets of dust that exploded in midair, raining down small embers. She quickly maneuvered herself to land, sending up a huge burst of ice dust, raining down snow on the park, to the delight of the children watching. Her smile quickly slipped from her face as a sharp pain ran through her chest.

Suddenly there was a loud clatter as Myrtenaster fell from her hand. The children weren't paying attention to her anymore, instead choosing to stare at the snow falling to the ground. Her hands started to shake and she felt her lungs constricting, making her cough violently. It didn’t stop, not even when her legs gave out from under her and her vision swam and her ears rang with the sounds of Velvet screaming at her, asking what was wrong.


	3. There's Nothing Wrong With Seeking Help (Just Make Sure That You Do)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter's up, hope you all like it. If you did, feel free to comment and tell me why. Hope you're looking forward to what's to come as much as I am.

The sunlight barely reached past the tinted windows of the shop. They were always like that, always just on the verge of blocking out the outside world, the shady figures of people walking on the streets just barely visible. She liked it like that, and almost never touched the switches to brighten the shop. It made her feel safe, it made her feel like she had a chance of being forgotten by the cruel outside world that had decided they didn’t want her anymore. She was putting a poster up on the wall of her shop, something that the superintendent told her she had to put up. It was something about a new strain of the flu, about how its symptoms were coughing, shaking and a noticeable shift in personality. It said that if your friend showed any signs they were to be admitted into the nearest hospital. Apparently it was very contagious. She wasn't sure if she believed them. Actually, she was certain she didn’t believe them.

She finished putting it up and slowly got down the ladder, making sure she didn't fall. It seemed that she had become crushingly cautious and reserved since her team had split up. She was alone and she had to own up to that, but it didn't hurt any less. It didn't hurt less especially since her place of business and residence were once owned by a good friend of hers. Tuckson had been a steady presence in her life, even if they didn't get past smiles and the occasional small talk. They had a strange rapport that came from their heritage in the White Fang.  But now he was gone, probably dead, and her team was scattered around the continent. She was alone. She had been, for a long time.

There wasn't much business in the old, hidden bookstore that used to be a hub of conversation and socialization. The city around it had grown up; free to thrive with the monsters gone and the head of the biggest criminal organizations behind bars. Torchwick, as the news was so adamant to reiterate, would never see the light of day again. It didn’t matter to her, though. What mattered was that the shop was mostly empty and Blake was partially grateful for it. Sometimes she did wish for company, for another person to talk to, but whenever the bell above the door rang her heart would leap and her hands would make certain that yes, she was still wearing her bow. This time, however, as the bell chimed her hands found nothing but hair and ears. She ducked behind the counter quickly; hoping whoever it was would just leave.

"Blake?" A voice asked. She froze, feeling her ears twitching as the adrenalin slowly faded. She got up shakily, trying to force a smile onto her face. There’s no need to be so skittish, she reminded herself, you’re not a huntress anymore. There are no more monsters to fight.

"Sun. You scared me."

He smiled at her, his messy blond hair falling into his eyes. He hadn't cut it in a while, and it was showing. His tail swayed gently behind him, keeping close to his legs. His eyes, though bright, were untrusting. He had learned the same lesson she had: faunus weren't welcome in the cities anymore. "Sorry 'bout that. I probably should have called ahead or something but, well, I kinda got kicked out of my apartment."

"What about Neptune? I thought you two were sharing the cost."

Sun shrugged noncommittally. "He left."

Blake stiffened. "When?" He shrugged again. "Why?"

"I don't know," at this his nonchalant attitude fell and Blake was almost certain he was going to break down. "I just got home one day and he was gone. I don't know what happened to him. I still don't. I've asked around, I've gone to Mountain Glenn to see if I could find him, tried to talk to Weiss, but he's nowhere. It's like he just disappeared."

She noticed the bag he was carrying. She smiled, this time trying to comfort him. She had lost her team and from what she understood Sun and Neptune had been left alone by the other half of their team. She could imagine the turmoil Sun must be experiencing, the pain of losing a lifelong partner. Where Neptune was now she couldn't guess, but she could help an old friend that needed a home. "If you're here to ask for a place to stay then there's nothing more to say. Of course you're welcome here."

He shook his head, a watery smile pushing through the memories of his old teammate. "Thanks, Blake. I knew I could count on you."

She put up a hand. "If you think you're getting in for free you've got another thing coming. You've going to work in the shop if you're going to stay here." She could have sworn that she saw tears falling from Sun's eyes, but she would never be certain, for he wrapped her in a tight hug, almost like he didn't want to let go, almost like he didn’t want her to see his face.

They stood like that for a while before Blake finally pushed away. She swallowed hard, feeling a deep pain in her stomach. She tried to keep the smile on her face, tried to keep the friendly air. The coughing soon came, and she forced herself to stop long enough to meet Sun's confused and worried look. "Are you ok, Blake?"

"Yeah, yeah," she said, her voice shaky and raw. "I just-" another rattling cough ran through her. "I just need to go to the bathroom for a second. Summer cold, right?"

"Right," Sun said slowly, not looking like he believed her. She backed up, heading towards the closest bathroom. She practically slammed the door behind her, shaking hands searching through the medicine cabinet. She found a battered pill box and swallowed the medicine inside it. She felt the cough recede and she breathed deeply, trying to stop the shaking. She tried to get her thoughts together again.

A few months ago, before the government decided to start spreading propaganda and fake diseases in a transparent attempt to keep the population calm, she had paid a visit to the doctor. They had assured her that it was nothing, just a flu that would pass in a week or two. A week or two later the symptoms had only gotten worse. By that time she knew that something was going on, that whatever sickness she was infected with was far from a flu. She had talked to Ironwood about it (talked being a very loose term) and he had told her that they were taking care of it and that there was no need for a former huntress to worry herself with it. She had no idea what it was, but she knew it was bigger then what anyone suspected. She knew that it was more than just a flu. She knew that if no one stepped forward and tried to stop it it would just destroy humanity just as it was getting back on its legs. She couldn’t find it in herself to care about that.

She coughed again, despite the medicine. This time, when she pulled her hand away from her mouth it was covered in thick black blood. She looked up at the mirror, met with the swimming image of her face, at least what she thought was her face, framed in her messily cut short hair. What she saw wasn't her own face, but the face of a monster that she had seen too many times in her life, one that she had killed time and time again, her friends always there to help if she needed it. Her eyes seemed to glow a blood red, and the etchings on her face resembled and Ursa's in design. Her ears picked up the distant sound of frantic pounding on the door. Her head was clouded and the beating of her heart only seemed to make it worse. She could sense the fear, the panic, from the faunus that was just outside the door. A guttural growl pushed itself from her throat. She let herself collapse against the sink, breathing heavily. The pain was receding, and a glance at the mirror proved that what she thought was a Grimm’s red eyes had been nothing more than a figment of her imagination. At least she desperately hoped so.

With shaking hands she opened the door, hoping to stop the horrible pounding on the door. She shook her head, trying to clear it. It was just Sun, she knew Sun. She didn’t need to be afraid. Afraid wasn’t the right word and she knew it. “Blake! What happened? I heard you… are you alright?”

She nodded, swallowing hard. “Y-yeah, I’m alright,” she forced herself to say. She didn’t want to bring Sun into this. She didn’t want him to torture himself over something so minor. A voice in her head told her that it was anything but minor, that she _needed_ to bring someone into it before it destroyed her. She ignored it, instead painting on a smile. “Why don’t I show you your room, then?”


	4. We Can See Through Your Disguise (Even If You're Not Trying to Hide)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fighting scenes, am I right? I really didn't want to write it, but it wouldn't have been RWBY without a fight scene. There'll be more to come, I promise. Hope it was worth the wait, and I want to thank Monty Oum for making such an amazing show, even if he didn't get to see it through to the end.

She ducked and blocked every strike that came at her. For every sloppy punch or misstep she punished her opponent harshly, a smile painted permanently on her face for the entire fight. As one opponent after another came to challenge her, the shouts of the crowd became more muted and less excited. Apparently they had decided not to bet on the ex-huntress that was once called unbeatable. She jumped, her bare feet hitting the bouncy floor. She was waiting for her next challenger, whoever they were. She wiped a hand over her forehead.

She thought briefly of how she had ended up there. Since her team had split up she hadn’t talked to any of them. She hadn’t even made an attempt to find out where any of them went. Sometimes she would feel a little guilty but then she would remember the terms they separated on, the shouting and the fighting and the bitterness that Ruby seemed to use as a weapon. She had decided to continue doing what she did best: beating the shit out of anyone that dared to challenge her.  It was almost laughable, how easily people fell under her punches. It seemed that most people didn’t bother unlocking their auras anymore.

She heard someone climb onto the arena, asserting that they were her next opponent. As she stepped forward and made herself known Yang’s hands dropped. She looked tired and worn and _mean_ but she still recognized her. “Coco?” Yang asked, standing straight up and feeling the adrenalin slowly seep out of her. The ex-huntress only gave her a cruel smile.

"Haven't seen you in a while," she said smoothly, like they were seeing each other at a café or anywhere besides where they were. Her hair was considerably less stylized and her outfit was similar to Yang’s, a simple tank top and shorts to fight in. She moved quickly, faster than she was used to in the opponents that she had taken to fighting. In an instant Yang's head snapped back from a harsh kick to her chin. She saw sparks dance in front of her eyes and she shook her head to clear it. The spectators had gone silent. "What? Can't you fight back?"

Yang reeled back, sending a hard punch to Coco's face. Her hand was caught an inch from her lips and her opponent twisted her wrist, forcing her to the ground. Yang kicked her feet out from under her, making her let go of her wrist. They traded blows, and Yang became increasingly frustrated as everything was blocked with practiced ease. It was almost as bad as fighting Neo. "Can't you keep your team together?"

She sent another kick towards Yang, this one harder and angrier. "Can't you?" She hissed, throwing rapid punches to Yang's midsection. She dodged, using her momentum to spin around to Coco's back and grabbed her around the stomach. Coco’s knees bent and her arms shot out, breaking the grip Yang had gained.

"I wasn't the leader," Yang whispered, before getting an elbow in her face and a foot on her toes. She was knocked back and she scrambled, trying to get back up. She caught a glance at Coco's face. It was a mask of barely contained rage. She swept at her ankles, successfully knocking her onto her stomach.

"The whole world ended, Yang," she said, holding her down with a foot on her back. She slowly applied pressure, trying to keep her down. "And where were you?"

She scoffed, trying to push herself up off the ground. Coco just kept digging her heel into her back. "The world didn't end," she ground out, "You're just being overdramatic."

She heard the ref for the fight blow a shrill whistle and claim Coco the victor. The crowd burst out cheering. She helped Yang up, a frown etched into her face. "You don't know, do you?"

Yang rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I totally know what you're cryptically hinting at." She turned and left the small arena that she had been fighting all day on. She found herself in the locker rooms, pulling off the sweat soaked top that she had been fighting in and swapping it with an old T-shirt that she had taken to wearing instead of her old huntress outfit. She turned around and saw Coco behind her. She just glared at the other huntress. "What do you want?"

Her anger quickly evaporated as she took in Coco's expression. Her eyebrows were pulled together and she looked practically scared. It was a strange thing to see, especially since Coco was known for being the level headed one of team CFVY.  "I need to talk to you."

"What, you mean we didn't talk enough in the ring?" Yang snapped. She hadn't changed much in her years away from her team but for the fact that she got angrier faster than she ever had. She would have walked away then if Coco hadn't grabbed her. She yanked her hand off of her shoulder, practically spitting, " _Don't touch me_."

"Fine, but you need to listen to me." Yang crossed her arms and glared, but she didn't leave. There was something in Coco's tone that told her this was more serious than some fight that didn't end in her favor. "Do you remember the fields? Do you remember that day when the Grimm died?"

Yang nodded reluctantly. "How could I forget?" She could still hear them, laying down and dying in hundreds. She still remembered why they had to cut Blake’s hair and why Ruby had started to destroy their furniture with Crescent Rose out of anger. She remembered cutting her own hair, deciding that her long hair was tethering her to the life that she had been thrust from. She remembered coming home one day only to find the apartment they had managed to rent empty.

"Something happened that day, something Ironwood is trying to keep on the down low, something he doesn't want people to figure out about. I don't know how it happened or why, all I know is what it does." She paused and Yang could have sworn she saw her eyes slowly grow wet. "I-" her voice broke. "I killed him, Yang."

Yang felt her body grow stiff. "Who?" She managed to whisper. "Why?"

"Fox," she barely forced out. "We managed to stay together, but one day he started coughing and shaking and I came home one day and he wasn't him anymore. It was like he was a monster and he didn't know me. I wasn't trying to but I didn't have a choice. I'm worried about Velvet and Yatsuhashi. I don't know if they're still alive or if they're still themselves."

Yang had trouble finding any words. She felt like a rug had been pulled out from under her and she was having trouble finding her footing again. It was enough of a shock seeing Coco _cry_ but the sudden shift in attitude from the fight made it all the worse. She didn’t know what to think, she wasn’t sure how to cope with the new information. Her separation from her team hadn’t been so bad before, she had just assumed they were safe and happy in some way. Now there was a possibility that they could be dead. She couldn’t form words. All she could settle on was, "Why are you telling me?"

"Because I don't want you to wonder and worry about your team. You have to find them, Yang, and make sure that they're still alive. I don't want you to live through what I am.” She handed her a piece of paper. “I don’t know where Ruby or Blake is, but I know where Weiss is. Find them and try to save them if you can.”

She nodded, and took the paper, and that was how she found herself in a train headed to Mountain Glenn.


	5. A Late Night Out (You Should Really Head Home)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. If you like it, feel free to comment and tell me why!

The grass was green, startlingly green. It was the color of the leaves in the emerald forest, the color of Pyrrha's eyes. There were trees sparsely dotting the landscape that became farther apart and less frequent the closer they got to Vale's walls. The hunters were lined up, all forms of weapons drawn, and a palpable sense of fear in the air. What if it didn't work? What if they were forced to fight off legions of Grimm just a few feet from the city's open gates? It wasn't long before the monsters started to show up and make their fears a reality. As they slowly crawled from the trees, drawn to the fear from the hunters and huntresses, the disease was set loose on them. One by one, they fell, crying out and disappearing into the air. The more ambitious ones ran forward, clawing and biting at the hunters that fought back. One came towards team RWBY and Ruby yelled something as a huge Ursa lunged at Blake. The Faunus girl swiftly pulled out Gambol Shroud and sliced through the air. Normally it would have just knocked the Grimm back, but something they had neglected to tell the hunters was that the disease greatly reduced the Grimm's power, leaving their skin practically paper thin. Blake's attack easily cut the Ursa in half, spraying her with blood that clotted and clung to her. It didn't disappear when the monster did, and in a split second decision she cut her hair- the part of her that was the most damaged by it -and stood steady once again. The only person that reacted to her decision at all was Yang, who seemed to flinch as her black and bloody hair fell to the ground.

Another Grimm attacked Ruby, causing her to wrench her attention away from what was happening to her team. She shot a round of dust into the Beowolf's stomach, causing chunks of bloody fur and skin to fly at her, one particularly large one hitting her in the cheek. She quickly wiped it away with her cape as Weiss's white dress was quickly dyed red. A ways away she could see JNPR working just as hard. She glanced away just as Ren was knocked back by a King Taijitsu. Later on she would learn that the attack left him with damaged vocal chords, silencing the usually quiet hunter. As the fight wore on with the hunters hardly breaking a sweat, things started to take a turn for the worse. It wasn't expected and no one really knew what was happening, but a few of the hunters collapsed, coughing and shaking. If they could they had stumbled away, only to get practically torn apart by the remaining Grimm. The ones that survived were rushed off to the hospitals and no one questioned it. Ironwood had insisted that it was nothing and that it would all be fine in the end. Since the symptoms didn’t show up again everyone forgot about it in order to keep fighting.

Ruby's vision rapidly faded, something she was sure didn't happen before. It was in that moment that she realized that it must be a dream or some kind of memory. As her vision slowly returned she saw that she was in some kind of white room with monitors on every wall and leagues of scientists staring at them, scribbling or typing notes rapidly on whatever it was they were watching. She was positive she’d never seen anything like that in her life, but she didn’t question it. It was just a dream. The image fizzled out, being replaced by a concrete walled hallway with what looked like cells sinking into recesses on either side of the hall. There were growls and snarls that came from them and every so often there would be a crash. Ruby felt her feet move without her consent, slowly walking to the closest cell. Inside was what she thought was a person. They had short, dark hair that seemed coarse and rough, and their face was obscured by glowing red lines that wound around their face and down their neck and all over their body. White, bone-like protrusions grew on their arms, some almost like armor and others spikes.

Her head shot up from where it was resting on her arms. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes and stretched. That dream was weird, but not the weirdest she had ever had. She extracted her arms from the hot metal that they had been resting on and got up. Her workshop was not always the cleanest but she kept it neat enough that she would know where everything was. She wound her way around the heavy industrial equipment and grabbed a purse and keys. She slung the purse around her shoulder and left her workshop, locking the door behind her. She walked on the road for a while- she had never managed to learn how to drive a car- and soon found herself in the actual city. It wasn't as grand as Vale and it didn't give her the same foreboding feeling that Mountain Glenn gave her. It was a nice middle ground, though it was growing faster than she would have liked.

She walked through the streets, people rushing past and generally ignoring her. She wasn't known by face so much as by name. The legendary Ruby Rose still existed somewhere, though she wasn't quite sure where. She wondered briefly what had become of that guy, Michael, that had come to her looking for a weapon. She wasn't sure if it mattered all that much.

Unlike Vale, Achievement City kept an ample supply of dust in a form she could work with, even if it went generally unsold. There weren’t a lot of people lately that had any use for it. It only helped her. Dust was perpetually on sale or cheaper than dirt at any given time. It was an amazing invention, an amazing weapon, but only the military had use for it and they had enough as it was. She went through a few stores, buying dust and anything else she might need later.

The store reminded her a lot of From Dust Till Dawn. The only thing missing was a man holding a sword to her face and trying to rob her. She wandered to the magazine section near the back, seeing no other patrons but some guy sitting on a chair a few feet away. He looked like a hunter, with his flamboyant outfit and sense of confidence. He didn’t look like hunters as they existed these days, but more like they used to, like he had survived, untouched, by the passing of time. She half expected him to say he went to Beacon or Signal if she asked him.

She wandered over to him once the flimsy pieces of media stopped interesting her. It was all garbage anyway. She kicked his foot and he glanced up at her, seemingly uninterested. “What?” he asked.

“You a hunter?” she asked. She expected to get some sort of reaction from him but he only shrugged. He wouldn’t be fun to talk to at all.

“Yeah. What about it?”

“Do you know Michael Jones?” This time she did get a reaction. She half expected him to jump up and point whatever weapon he had on him at her.

“What about him?” he whispered. It sounded like he was scared, and Ruby wasn’t quite sure how to react to that.

“Nothing. He just came to my shop a few days ago. Said he needed to leave the city.” She stood there for a while, just looking at him. He looked like she had just told him his mother had died. “What’s your name?”

“Ray,” he said.

“Ruby Rose,” she said, and walked away. If he wanted to talk later then he would know where to find her. Again, her name was known to the general public. It was what she looked like that usually threw them. They were used to the smiling 15 year old that got enrolled into Beacon with short, black hair and a bright red dress. If anyone had ever seen her as a student at Beacon they would probably wonder where her dress went and why it looked like she hadn’t cut her hair in years.

She found herself wandering through the streets, the street lights turning on as the sun went down. She had spent too much time out; she wanted to get back home. When she finally started home, she realized that she had no idea where she was. The roads were cracked and the sidewalks seemed to blend into the squat, graffiti’d buildings.

The alleyways began to fade into dark corners and the trash cans lined against the street threw shadows on the walls. She heard someone walking behind her and she instinctively reached back to where Crescent Rose always sat, only to find it empty. She hadn’t brought it that particular day. She felt her pulse quicken. She used to be a huntress, but that didn’t make her invincible.

She felt something bump into her back that felt suspiciously like the barrel of a gun and someone whisper, “Don’t move.”

She felt herself get dragged into an alley and swung around, her eyes finally finding her possible mugger, if that was indeed what they were. She didn’t expect to recognize him. “Dove?” She had never been on the best terms with team CRDL but that didn’t mean that she didn’t recognize them.

His hands shook around a battered version of his old weapon, the blade obviously dulled to the point that it was unusable, the gun attachment the only working part. “Shut up,” he said, obviously not recognizing her. He looked like he had fallen into bad times.

“Where’s your team, Dove? Where’s Cardin and Russel and Sky?” He looked angry as he pulled the trigger on his weapon, only missing by an inch because of Ruby’s fast reflexes and her semblance. It probably would have killed her if she hadn’t reacted.

“I didn’t ask for a narrative on my life,” he said, but he lowered his weapon. He could tell that he wasn’t going to win the fight, even when Ruby didn’t have her weapon with her. “And I don’t know where they are. Where’s _your_ team, Ruby?”

She shrugged. “I guess we’re both in the same boat, then. You have a place to stay for the night?” He sighed and shook his head. If his tattered jeans and grimy hoodie were any indication he hadn’t had a good place to sleep in quite a while. “Want to come back to my place?” It wasn’t like they were in school anymore. The bullies and nerds and any other stereotype that people had built up around the strange quirks kids gained during schooling didn’t matter anymore. A hunter was a hunter, and they were all struggling in one way or another. She might be bitter, but she wasn’t cruel.

“Yeah, that would be cool. Thanks.” Ruby smiled a bit, and held out her hand. Dove looked at it, puzzled. “What?”

“Give me the fucking sword.” He handed it over immediately; rubbing his hands like it had burned him. She checked the cartridge, seeing a few dust rounds in the gun. She was almost positive that Dove hadn’t heard the growling coming from deeper in the alley. “Stay here,” she said, slowly creeping along the concrete. She heard Dove following her. Hunters never changed.

She glanced back and forth, looking for the source of the noise. She heard someone start to cough, and she followed that to its source. Someone was sitting near a dumpster, a blanket and worn backpack at their feet. They had their head in between their knees, hands tearing at their hair. Ruby stepped forward, nudging them with a foot. Something told her that she should probably start running. A hand shot out and grabbed her ankle, and with a yelp she crashed to the ground.

She swung the dull blade at the hand. It bounced off, but it had the desired effect. The hand released her and for the first time she noticed how _not human_ it looked. It was clawed and the knuckles almost looked like they were bursting from the skin with white bones all over the arm. She cocked the gun, just in time to shoot the creature in front of her that was slowly standing up. She heard Dove shout, “What the fuck?” as its face became visible. The red eyes stared at her as black blood gushed from the wound in the shoulder that she had managed to hit. It growled, and its resemblance to a Grimm was uncanny. The red marks all over its face similar to a Boarbatusk, with white, horn like things coming from its face.

Ruby felt her adrenalin rush through her as she dodged something between a clawing movement and a punch. She shot another dust round to its chest, only to have it stagger back for a moment. It just came at her, this time angrier. She dodged the claws and the horns, activating her semblance just in time to jam the dull blade into its stomach, remembering what she had read on Boarbatusks when she was enrolled at Beacon. As it fell over, dead, it looked like it had never been anything but a person.

She didn’t dare try to get Dove’s weapon back.

“What,” he asked, “the _hell_ was _that?”_

“I don’t know,” Ruby said, “But I don’t think it was normal.” She felt her hands start to shake. She wanted to throw up. “Did I just kill that guy?” she whispered.

“I don’t know,” Dove echoed her, “But we should probably leave.”


	6. Listen to People When They Talk (Sometimes it's Worth it)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. If you bother keeping up with me as an author you'll know that I've been working on a ton of projects (two more added to my current two) and jugling them all is not easy. You'll probably be happy to hear that this fic is probably going to be around twenty chapters. I've outlined them and now all I have to do is write them, so hopefully updates will be more frequent. As always, comment and tell me why you liked it or didn't like it and enjoy the chapter!

When she woke up the air was filled with the smells of disinfectant and dying people. She always hated hospitals, and it seemed that her years had not changed that. She sat up, looking around at the room, trying to figure out why she was there. She remembered collapsing on the ground and...

Her hand leapt to her face and she nearly knocked a glass over looking for a mirror. She found one, a small bedside mirror, and saw herself. There was nothing wrong with her, nothing like what she'd dreamed. She blew out hot air, disturbing the hair that had fallen into her face. She heard someone shift somewhere beside her and she turned her head. She smiled when she saw Velvet. It quickly disappeared when it wasn't reciprocated.

"You fainted at the park yesterday." Weiss blinked at that. She didn't remember that part, but it made sense. She remembered falling, she remembered coughing, but there was a distinct black space where the rest of her memories should be after that.

"I did?" Weiss asked, even though she knew the answer. Her mind was still muddled with the dream she'd had the night before. It was strange, and she didn't know what to make of it. People turning into Grimm? That was just ridiculous.

"Yes," Velvet said softly. "The doctors say that there's nothing wrong with you and that there was no cause for what happened. They think maybe you're stressed out or something from all the work you do. I told them that you have employees to worry for you."

Weiss had to laugh at that. She knew Velvet was just joking but it still wasn't far from the truth. "So I'm alright? I can leave?"

"Well, yes, but-" Velvet cut herself off, seemingly rethinking what she was about to say.

"But what? Come on, you can tell me, what happened?" she urged the faunus girl on. It couldn't be too bad. Whatever happened at the park was just a weird one time event. She doubted anything bad would come out of it. Maybe the doctors were right, maybe it was stress. God, Weiss hoped so.

"You... when you collapsed I ran over to you. I tried asking you what was wrong, and you looked up and..." Velvet bit her lip. Weiss reached over and placed a hand over her's. She felt hurt when Velvet flinched away from her touch. "Your eyes... they were red, Weiss, and I... I'm scared about what that means."

"What do you mean?" Weiss asked, already putting on her regular clothes over the plain white dress she had been given. For some reason the red eyes thing didn't phase her. Maybe Velvet was having problems with stress. Weiss knew that dealing with her on a daily basis had to be tiring. She hoped with all her heart that it was just stress, that it wasn't something to worry about. 

"I- before you hired me I was living with Yatsuhashi. I think Fox and Coco were living somewhere else, but I haven't talked to them in years." Velvet balled her fists and slammed them down on her lap, obviously trying not to cry. "I came home one day, and Yatsuhashi wouldn't talk to me. He was obviously avoiding me, and I just backed off and gave him space. I didn't know what was wrong with him, just that it was always best to not bother him if he's acting weird. Weiss, I really wish that I'd bothered him, that I'd talked to him."

"What happened?" she asked gently.

"He... he left, but not before I finally had the courage to ask him what was wrong. He told me it was nothing, that it would pass, and later that day he yelled at me, he told me that he was leaving. At some point his shouting stopped sounding... well, like him. It sounded like a monster was screaming at me, and I know that might not make sense but it's what it sounded like. And he left, but I swear to you that it looked like his eyes were red, that he didn't look _human_ anymore." Velvet stood up and helped Weiss stand. "Please... get help. I don't want what happened to Hashi to happen to you."

Weiss smiled. She had no idea what happened between Velvet and her former teammate but she knew that the faunus girl was always had answers, and it was shocking to see her so confused and lost. She was usually so bright. What happened between them must have really hurt her. "If it means that much to you I'll talk to some other doctors about it. For now we need to get back home. I'm sure everyone is worrying about us."

Velvet nodded and, after signing a few release forms and wading through inquisitive nurses, they were on their way back to the Schnee Dust Co. building. When they got there people averted their gaze. Apparently there was someone waiting for her that had forced herself past security and all the way up to her office. Weiss had a very good idea of who it was, the theory only being confirmed when she pushed the door open.

"Yang," she said, her time low and unamused. There was no happiness in seeing her teammate again. She had always envisioned herself being ecstatic about seeing her friends again, talking to them and asking how they've been. Now, though, after everything that happened, she didn't feel like smiling.

Her teammate stood and stared at her. She had been sitting on _her_ chair, the one behind _her_ desk. She looked tired, like she hadn't slept in a few days. Her hair was short, almost a pixie cut, and the jacket that she wore was slipping off her shoulder. Something like a smile passed over Yang's face. "Weiss."

"What are you doing here?" Weiss asked coldly, finally living up to her former title that Jaune had so lovingly given her.

"I'm getting the team back together, Weiss."

"Why?" Was the first thing that pushed itself from her lips. "Why now? Why not a week ago? Why not a year ago?"

Yang didn't say anything at first. She sighed and shrugged. "I talked to Coco. She said that something's happening, something big. She told me to find my team, to make sure you're all alive and well. I want to do something about what's happening, Weiss."

"And you just believed her, no questions asked?" Weiss snapped, crossing her arms. "Did it ever occur to you that maybe she doesn't know everything? That maybe, just maybe, there's nothing to worry about? The Grimm are gone, Yang. You don't have to worry anymore."

She didn't look impressed. "Yeah? Why were you in the hospital, Weiss."

"Who told you about that?" She asked stiffly.

"One of your employees told me. Why were you in the hospital, Weiss?"

She felt an unfounded anger rise up in her. It had been years since she had talked to Yang, why was it that she just now decided to come and talk to her? That she just decided to _care_ after all this time? "You can stay here a day."

"What?" Yang asked, dropping her guard for an instant.

"You can stay here a day. Then I want you gone. Go find Blake, or Ruby. You're not getting any help from me."

“But Weiss-“

“ _No!”_ she cut Yang off. “Don’t you ‘but Weiss’ me. If you need my help you should have thought about the years I haven’t seen you. We’re not a team anymore, Yang. We haven’t been for a long time. Go find your sister or something. She’ll be more willing to help you then I am.”

She turned and left the room, almost running into Velvet outside of the door. “What was all that shouting? Wait, Weiss- come back!”

She was already gone. She stormed past a few employees, looking for someplace free of people. People rushed to get out of her way like she was some kind of plague. She managed to keep herself together for long enough to find an empty office room, the walls covered in painter’s tape and tarps all over the floor. It smelled like paint so strongly that she didn’t wonder why there was no one in the room. She sat down heavily on the cheap plastic chair in the room and covered her face with her hands.

She felt the hot tears fall from her eyes and she chocked back a sob. Her chest hurt and her head hurt and her heart beat fast against her chest. She was so _angry_ and yet she just wanted to curl up and sleep for years and forget that she was ever part of a team, a team that had disappeared and broken apart. She wanted to _forget_ that she knew Yang, that she knew Blake or Ruby. She didn’t want to _care_ so much. But she did, and it only made more tears fall.

She squeezed her eyes shut, a soft hiccupping crying pushing itself from her mouth. She didn’t know what she wanted to do, if she wanted to help Yang or just let her leave. She felt so unbelievably bitter about the whole thing, and yet she still felt like they were a team. She still felt like she owed Yang something even if she hadn’t bothered to talk to her in years.

She heard the door to the office open and she quickly rubbed her eyes, knowing that they were still red and her cheeks were still wet. “Hey, Mercury, did you-“ she stopped, noticing that whoever she was talking to wasn’t in the room. She gulped at the glare she was getting from Weiss. “I’ll just, uh, leave- hey, are you alright?” she asked, noticing that she had been crying.

Weiss just rubbed her face, trying in vain to erase any sign of weakness. “I’m _fine.”_

“No offence, Ms. Schnee, but you don’t look fine.” She set down the papers she had been holding on a table and walked over to Weiss, a concerned look on her face. She didn’t look intimidated by Weiss, and that in itself was surprising. “If you need to talk about it I’d be willing to listen. I mean, you don’t really know me, but-“

“Emerald Sustrai. I remember you.”

“O-oh, really? Wow, I didn’t think you ever even knew I existed.”

Weiss smiled. She had made it a habit of knowing almost every student who passed through the school’s doors, though some names had long since faded from her memory. Emerald Sustrai had been hired a few months ago, along with Mercury Black, two names that she had managed to remember. They were exchange students, there for the tournament. It was strange to think of things like that after so long. “Of course I know you. You were there when the passage from Mountain Glenn to Vale broke open. I remember you were one of the ones to catch Torchwick.”

She smiled at that, a light dancing behind her eyes that she recognized too well from her time dealing with Ruby. She knew something that Weiss didn't. “Yeah… it seems so long ago since that happened. I kind of wonder why I even bothered back then. Honestly, it wasn’t worth it. Cinder always insisted that it was, that everything would work out and we’d come out on top. It’s been a few years now, and I’ve had time to think. I’ve decided that I don’t want anything to do with my old life. Well, except Mercury. He seems to keep following me around everywhere. I don’t think he’s quite given up yet.”

Weiss grinned, feeling the tears rapidly fade away. She wasn’t quite sure what Emerald was talking about but she knew that it was what she was feeling about Yang. “Yeah,” she whispered, “Yeah, I know what you mean.”

Emerald laughed bitterly, a surprising reaction. “Yeah, I’m sure you do, just not the exact way I’m talking about. I made a lot of mistakes in my life. And, by what I heard of you yelling at your old teammate, you still are.”

Weiss wanted to shout, to tell her that it was none of her business, but there was something about Emerald, something that she could relate to, that made her open up. “Yeah. She asked for my help. After all these years, she has the audacity to come back and ask- no, demand- for my help.”

“I understand that you’re probably bitter about that. I get what it feels like for someone to leave for years and then come back out of the blue and tell you that you _owe_ them something, like family relationships can hold even when one part of it is absent. But, from what I’ve learned, it’s better to forgive then to live life for years on end with nothing but ‘what ifs.’ Your teammate asked you for help. Try to forgive her. Maybe not today, maybe not a week from now, but once you’re ready, you should help her. A teammate is a once in a lifetime relationship that’s unlike anything else. Don’t throw it away. We all went through hard times after the schools were closed down and those criminals were put behind bars.”

Weiss got up and nodded. “Thanks, Emerald. I really appreciate that.”

“No problem. Now, uh, you wouldn’t happen to know where Mercury is, would you?”


End file.
